Oppenheimer – 13, Poor Things – 11, Killers of the Flower Moon – 10, Barbie – 8, Maestro – 7, American Fiction – 5, Anatomy of a Fall – 5, The Holdovers – 5, The Zone of Interest – 5, Napoleon – 3, The Creator – 2, Mission: Dead Reckoning – 2, Nyad – 2, Past Lives – 2, Society of the Snow - 2
Inevitable or not, films left out of the conversation entirely:
A Thousand and One, Afire, Air, All of Us Strangers, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, Asteroid City, Beau is Afraid, Beyond Utopia, Creed III, The Eight Mountains, Fallen Leaves, Ferrari, The Iron Claw, John Wick: Chapter 4, The Killer, Origin, Passages, Priscilla, Saltburn, Talk to Me, The Taste of Things, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, They Cloned Tyrone, Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie, Suzume, Wonka, You Hurt My Feelings
And the nominees are:
BEST PICTURE
(Ranked in order of preference - only for this category)
While it all comes down to Best Picture, one can’t deny that Oppenheimer is way in the lead as the frontrunner, with a combination of great reviews, many accolades, and clear audience approval, given its massive box office take. A couple misses in other categories from its closest rivals certainly help as well, along with Nolan being “due for a win” in the traditional eyes of the Academy. With all that in mind, there’s no lousy film listed here. In fact, they’re all good-to-great. The mixed company (comedies, dramas, a western, a fantasy) and the filmmakers behind them (3 women-directed features, a few international filmmakers) all delivered strong works tackling various themes and subject matter. Of course, I would have liked Spider-Verse to be the 4th animated film ever to be up for Best Picture, let alone other ways to shake things up, but it’s a solid lineup.
BEST DIRECTOR
This is Nolan’s to lose, but he, Scorsese, and Lanthimos were all locks going into this. The big news is obviously Greta Gerwig not making it into this category (for the 3rd time in a row, despite all three of her solo-directed films being nominated for Best Picture). With that said, I don’t call myself an expert, but as one who pays attention, the international branches have made a clear show of force for the past couple of decades to help bring in non-American filmmakers. So, instead of Gerwig and Alexander Payne for The Holdovers, here we have the solid inclusions of Triet and Glazer (also, it’s not like the Oscars ever prefer comedies over everything else). I’ll try not to repeat this too much, but both wanting more inclusion from folks deserving it and being satisfied with seeing great films made by whomever is allowed.
BEST ACTOR
There may have been thoughts of an out-of-nowhere surprise nom could have come for Andrew Scott in All of Us Strangers or Zac Efron in The Iron Claw, but the late release dates and the strength of the other performers kept this list pretty set. That said, DiCaprio misses out in favor of character actor Colman Domingo, who is expectedly solid in the okay-ish but mostly well-acted Rustin. After famously missing a lead nomination for Sideways 20 years ago, Giamatti is on the board and going head-to-head against Murphy. Meanwhile, Cooper has adopted the approach of “huge prosthetics get wins,” but at least he actually conducts. Wright would be my pick, so I’m happy to see him on the list. And just to say it again, for the first time in a while, none of these wins for Best Actor would upset me.
BEST ACTRESS
The other big deal in the news is Barbie not being nominated for Barbie. It’s also worth noting that this category is incredibly competitive, and Robbie always felt like a wild card fifth slot next to others. Bening making the cut makes it clear that an older generation still has a say. Gladstone is looking to fend off Stone as potentially the first Native American actress to be nominated, let alone win. Hüller gives my favorite performance of the year, but it’s certainly less flashy and will need a big push if she’s going to gain any traction. Greta Lee missing for Past Lives is a shame, and if I had my way, Origin and A Thousand and One would have easily been given higher consideration here (let alone for director). Oh, and fake nose awards only go to Cooper this year, not Helen Mirren.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
I guess Dominic Sessa could have landed here to show people's fondness for The Holdovers, but it was not to be. The same can be said for Charles Melton, who went from being a world favorite to “on to the next” pretty quickly. I can find my own amusement from seeing RRR in the top positions (with Downey being the most likely and preferred winner), but Sterling K. Brown getting his first nom is a joy to see. Also curious if Dafoe and Ruffalo had a bet going on who would make the cut between them. Looking down the list, perhaps Jamie Bell in All Us Strangers or John Magaro in Past Lives could have made for solid picks in their quiet but effective roles, let alone Glenn Howerton or Chris Messina as their screaming characters in BlackBerry and Air, respectively.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Even though Randolph has won almost every other award already (deservedly so, as it’s my other favorite performance of 2023), this was still the most competitive category among the majors to see who would fill out the other four slots. That also means we get the most surprises here. Nyad is okay, and Foster is really a co-lead performance with Bening, but she’s the best thing in it, and I can’t fault Netflix for doing well by their two strong performers. Blunt was always pretty likely, but Ferrera certainly wasn’t, so good on Barbenheimer coming through in this category. There were cases to be made for Rosamund Pike in Saltburn or Penelope Cruz in Ferrari (arguably the best parts of both films), but it wasn’t to be. Plus, Julianne Moore being off the list shut out May December’s acting trio entirely.
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Not making the cut for director, Gerwig (and Noah Baumbach) were still nominated for Adapted Screenplay (where it belongs), which should boost its chances for a win. The rest is mostly standard, apart from The Zone of Interest hopping in over Killers of the Flower Moon, one of the more expected nominations that didn’t happen. Origin being based on an unfilmable novel could have led to more as well, but it wasn’t to be, and Neon should have taken more stock in what they had outside of (the very deserved) Anatomy of a Fall.
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
There could have been some exciting shakeups here, with Emerald Fennell following up an Oscar win for Promising Young Woman with the more divisive Saltburn or some of the weirder options like Asteroid City or Dream Scenario, but it didn’t happen. Even a more traditional pick like Air was possible (and its lack of any nominations doesn’t help much in the realm of the new Affleck/Damon production company aiming for more adult, mid-budget releases). Still, there’s a good set of films here, with Past Lives, The Holdovers, and Anatomy of a Fall looking like the top competitors. That said, May December also managed to break through here, and it certainly has a strong fanbase.
BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM
I watched The Taste of Things for nothing! A film I absolutely knew how I would feel about (it’s fine, but the food looked great!), and it mattered not. Instead, there are four great/ambitious films here, and one I really want to see (Io Capitano). Enough is going on between each of these that I’ve seen where I can justify a win for any of them. It’s almost enough to make me look past France not submitting Palm d’Or winner and Best Picture nominee Anatomy of a Fall (in favor of…The Taste of Things). And yes, I can stand by Japan’s choice for German filmmaker Wim Wenders to be heading up their choice, as Perfect Days is a delight and far more of a traditional Oscar contender. Fallen Leaves was another great one though, and a couple of docs ended up missing out too. With a Best Picture nom in the category, this one is still pretty locked up, but it does tend to be one of the more exciting branches, so we’ll see how it shakes out. And just to say it clearly – The Teacher’s Lounge is fantastic.
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
Look, it's not like Elemental didn’t eventually find its groove at the box office, but it really does feel like a default Pixar nom when the more ambitious Suzume and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem were both sitting high with much stronger approval all-around. Not a surprise, as there tend to be a couple of smaller, international films that make it into the mix, but seeing the very sweet Robot Dreams make the cut is lovely. Not seeing Mario or Wish in the mix is practically a blessing. With all that in mind, it’s Miyazaki’s latest final film, The Boy and the Heron, versus my favorite film of the year, Across the Spider-Verse, which is not a bad place to be in terms of competition.
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM
While not as splashy and fun as some of the recent years, this may, by default, be one of the strongest categories by nature of what it represents. These are five films that are all tackling significant issues concerning various parts of the world. Having seen two of them, I’m well aware of the quality of filmmaking involved, and from what I’ve heard, that follows suit in the other nominees as well. The fact that the documentary branch avoided nominating a bunch of films centered on celebrities and artists we are already familiar with speaks to a level of creative thinking that I can certainly admire (and honestly hope can be reflected in the future on other major categories).
BEST ORIGINAL SONG
If Billie Eilish wins again, I’ll be curious how much of a grudge 14-time loser Diane Warren will have against the pop star. Regardless, this seems like a Barbie category, even with “Dance the Night” missing out on a nomination as well. “I’m Just Ken” is the fun kind of power ballad that would undoubtedly be fun to see performed at the Oscars. Still, I lament not getting the chance to see a hoedown take place on stage courtesy of “Dear Alien” from Asteroid City.
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Okay, so sure, none of us actively want to say anything bad about John Williams…but it’s not like there wasn’t room for something more exciting. Daniel Pemberton went all over the place to deliver an exciting score for Spider-Man. Joe Hisaishi has made a career’s worth of fantastic music, and The Boy and the Heron could have easily fit in here. Even Elemental, an okay film, has a terrific Thomas Newman score that could have given him another chance to lose again. Nice to see the late Robbie Robertson take in a nom here for his pal Scorsese’s epic. Laura Karpman is one of the few women ever to be nominated, and her work speaks well to the hangout vibe of American Fiction, punctuated with jazzy moments that speak to the film's themes. Fendrix's bizarre Poor Things score is also on the money for getting recognized, almost making up for the intriguing work by Mica Levi on The Zone of Interest not being nominated.
BEST FILM EDITING
The two longest films of the year are up for editing nominations, so get ready for all those jokes. I was excited to see Anatomy of a Fall make the cut, as it’s a skillfully designed feature combining multiple timelines and perspectives. There’s a showiness to Maestro that had me thinking it would get in, but I can’t really argue with what’s on display here. That said, nothing in the realm of action got in either, which is a shame considering what’s required to make John Wick Chapter 4 or The Killer truly sing in their construction. Even JA Bayona’s exciting and very tense Society of the Snow seemed like a good possibility.
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Always my favorite category, and it didn’t disappoint. Some great names managed to make their way into this slot, with some cool points going to El Conde for its moody black-and-white photography in the satirical vampire/political film. Maestro is clearly hoping to win with “Most,” while Oppenheimer is gunning for “Biggest.” Where does that leave Poor Things as far as ample uses of wide-angle lenses and fisheye for “Wackiest?” I certainly felt Saltburn benefited quite well from how it depicted its expansive location, let alone what Zone of Interest had to pull off in its minimalism. With that in mind, Past Lives, a Best Picture nominee, had some of the strongest cinematography you could ask for with a film of its kind and got nowhere. And don’t get me started on the color and vibrancy throughout John Wick Chapter 4 that made every single shot in that 169-minute film interesting.
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
Think pink because Barbie was all over this one with its elaborate, winning designs meant to reflect a toy world come to life. That’s one way to shake things up in a category filled with recreations of very atmospheric and, at times, depressing locations like battlefields or Osage County. Poor Things was also on hand to lighten things up with its fantastical set designs that easily emphasized the blank check Lanthimos and his team had to go nuts with this feature. That said, this felt like an excellent place for Adam Stockhausen to come through with the immaculate pastel designs of Asteroid City or the intense but creative use of the land surrounding Auschwitz to make room for a dream home next door in The Zone of Interest. And that’s saying nothing of films like Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Beau is Afraid, Bottoms, or They Cloned Tyrone.
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Exactly the same as Best Production Design, but it feels like a bit of a letdown as far as imagination. Barbie and Poor Things filled in the requisite need to show the Academy can have fun, but – yep, the period pieces get their recognition as usual. Nothing wrong with that, but think of all the fantastical stuff that had to be designed from scratch, whether it’s Guardians of the Galaxy, Dungeons & Dragons, Wonka, or even The Hunger Games and those wacky getups. The specificity of Asteroid City, alone, had something to consider more closely. And keeping America in mind, if we’re going for period looks – The Color Purple or Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret at least gave us other eras in the past, and with less of a budget to work with.
